What does a life well lived look like? I reflect on the privilege I have to even ask that question today. My grandparents immigrated to America as young parents, learning the fight of providing for one’s family with a scarcity mindset. Opportunities at home were limited and extremely competitive. Thus, they picked up and handed down values such as security, stability, and an unwavering commitment to their family as they navigated unfamiliar and often hostile territories. They were so focused on providing opportunities for their kids and simply surviving that they never were able to ponder the questions of their own passions. Moreover, having never been aware of the financial difficulties or social injustices around me, I often find myself drifting towards a naive idealism when thinking about my future. It’s easy for an upper-middle class, sheltered individual to adopt a savior’s complex without realizing it, its simplicity, and its slight condescending nature. I developed the desire to “save the world” (as most millenials do) without knowing what it tangibly could look like. Let’s drive down a transformational, nine month journey that tested me and exposed the true bones of what I believed. Beyond textbooks and TV ads came real interactions with real people who told me their stories-- their joys and their qualms, their everyday ways of life. I heard success stories ranging from the CEO of NUCAFE (Joseph Nkandu) fighting for rural prosperity for coffee farmers to camping site hosts seeking to make an impact on a community level by employing locals. The idealism in me swelled up every time I heard these stories, when they were close enough for me to touch. Yet we also drove down rickety roads of blocks and blocks of people poverty. Less materialistic lifestyles, same smiles. I started to reconsider what my shallow concept of what was necessary for one to live a happy” and “fulfilled” life. Was it so shallow as to mean economic prosperity, or achieving the same standard of living that I had here in the states? What does that "American Dream" really mean? If it weren’t for my faith grounding me and learning to fight against a materialistic perspective of “the good life”, I would have been jaded as to why a God could create such inequities in society. I would be utterly depressed by the hideous nature of humanity when I saw people in poverty because of corruption. This is not to negate the real needs of people in developing countries- clean water, access to education, etc., but to just highlight the way I was oversimplifying what a happy life looked like. I was left with a sobering thought: we will never reach heaven on earth on our own terms. Regardless of the number of life improving companies started or positive policies implemented, there is a utopia us “do-gooders” all seek to achieve in our lifespan that is impossible. Yet… the story doesn’t end there. I’m reminded that at the core of social entrepreneurship is love for our fellow brothers and sisters. It's not about believing we can solve every single problem in the world for everyone; instead, we can sure demonstrate our love for one another by engaging with one another. Partnering together. Bringing out the best in one another. The heart of social entrepreneurship is something I’ve grown to love- not a desire to “fix” people's situation from a top-down perspective or force our way of living upon them, but more so to encourage our brothers and sisters to thrive in a lacking environment. After all, how often has "doing good" been tarnished by god complexes from the western world? Who's to say we got it right? The training from the fellowship has taught me to reconsider what "doing good" looks like in international communities. I found myself thrown into a community of individuals specializing along different stages of the fight; some engaged in the communities they understood so well, others transferring the business knowledge they accumulated in university. I came to the realization that while I could never fully understand the issues they face, I could use the education I have to support them in areas they lack capacity. Whether that involve consulting or working with a non-profit organization, I desire to use my business background to help organizations with more intimate understanding of social issues thrive. Our advisor speaking at the Global Social Benefit Incubator. Miller Center specializes in aiding social enterprises to grow through a week long bootcamp to teach essential business skills and ultimately, raise capital to expand their impact. Through all these experiences, I still stand at a crossroads in terms of vocational discernment, wondering what it means to live an impactful life. Will the route I take be a conventional one- a stable job to pay back my family for all the sacrifices they made? Or will I start off with a bit of a risk, knowing that supporting social entrepreneurship is a seed rooted deep within me that keeps spreading? While I title this blog post “The end of the journey”, it’s only the start to the rest of my life. While I can’t decidedly define the parameters of a “life well lived”, I know it starts with a little bit of compassion and a healthy dose of idealism. I know I’ve learned a spirit of grit and humility from the people around me through this fellowship. Regardless of how many enterprises they’ve helped succeed or companies they’ve started themselves, the people in Miller Center have helped shaped what I think true impact looks like-- and their humble mindset going into it.
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